College Planning & Management

JUN 2012

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and 1,200 employees. Lewisburg is a com- munity of slightly more than 7,000 resi- dents. There were several challenges facing this collaboration, including identifying projects that served both the University and the community's interests, and avoid- ing the appearance that the University was attempting to dominate the community. The most signifi cant challenge was that there were no ready models for university- community collaborations on the small scale of Lewisburg and Bucknell. Proposing a Plan for Collaboration After substantial internal discussions, the University's administration ultimately proposed a plan focusing largely on facili- ties already under University ownership along the commercial corridor. This "bookend" approach envisioned using strategic assets of the University to anchor the downtown business district while positively impacting people, programs, and facilities on Bucknell's campus. The Bucknell Board of Trustees ap- proved this approach, which came to be known as the Lewisburg Core Community Initiative, provided that these efforts did not interfere with plans for new facilities on campus or require an inordinate amount of University funds. In 2007, we led a delegation that included local government offi cials and community representatives, as well as the University leadership, to a meeting with state offi cials, including the governor. At this meeting a vision for the community was presented. Bucknell would develop a number of facilities that would anchor the historic downtown area of Lewisburg. This could include relocating the University Bookstore into the downtown, developing a Bucknell Inn, and establishing a University Art Gallery adjacent to a historic movie theater. In addition, Bucknell would relo- cate some of its business operations to the downtown to increase foot traffi c. The state offi cials embraced the project, agreeing to provide $12.5M in state grants to support the effort, contingent on the development of more refi ned plans. As those internal discussions contin- ued, it became clear that construction of a structured parking lot in conjunction with the proposed Campus Inn would require a substantial commitment of University funds, just as the stock market collapsed in 2008. Consequently, that project was dropped and the focus shifted to four other projects, all in the downtown corridor: The campus bookstore, the campus theatre, an administrative offi ce building, and a small business incubator. These four projects 021(< GRZQ WKH GUDLQ" ,I \RX DUHQ·W DOUHDG\ WDNLQJ DGYDQWDJH RI WKH FRQWUDFW SXUFKDVLQJ VROXWLRQV DYDLODEOH WKURXJK 1-3$ \RX FRXOG SRWHQWLDOO\ EH PLVVLQJ KXQGUHGV HYHQ WKRXVDQGV RI GROODUV LQ VDYLQJV DJHQF\ JUHDWHU HIÀ FLHQFLHV WKDQ \RX FRXOG LPDJLQH 1-3$ 0HPEHUVKLS LV DW QR FRVW QR REOLJDWLRQ RU OLDELOLW\ DQG FRQQHFWV \RX WR RYHU FRPSHWLWLYHO\ ELG FRQWUDFWV WKRXVDQGV RI LQGXVWU\ SUHIHUUHG SURGXFWV DQG HTXLSPHQW DQG OLPLWOHVV RSSRUWXQLW\ WR VDYH \RXU WLPH DQG \RXU DJHQF\·V YDOXDEOH UHVRXUFHV -RLQ WRGD\ DW ZZZ QMSDFRRS RUJ 3UHPLXP 1-3$ FRQWUDFW VROXWLRQV RIIHU \RXU ZZZ QMSDFRRS RUJ 1-3$ LV D SXEOLF DJHQF\ SURYLGLQJ FRQWUDFW VROXWLRQV IRU RYHU JRYHUQPHQW HGXFDWLRQ DQG QRQ SURÀ W DJHQFLHV QDWLRQZLGH 0HPEHU JUNE 2012 / COLLEGE PLANNING & MANAGEMENT 63

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